Soon after thumbing a ride from a truck driver, Johnny McBride (Anthony Quinn) is badly burned and suffers from complete amnesia when the vehicle he’s riding in blows a tire and goes over an embankment in a fiery blaze. McBride later receives a tip from an acquaintance that a photo of him was placed prominently in the window of a photography studio in a town called Lyncastle, so Johnny immediately leaves for the burg in the hopes that something there will jog his memory.

Arriving in Lyncastle, Johnny learns to his regret that the photo in question was taken from a wanted poster and that he’s the prime suspect in the murder of the town’s district attorney—after he allegedly stole $250,000 from the bank at which he was employed. In order to solve the mystery of his identity and the crimes, McBride sets out to find old flame Vera West whom he believes can prove his innocence. As the clues start piling up, Johnny encounters resistance from several townspeople, most notably from mob boss Servo (Gene Evans), who rules Lyncastle with an iron fist.

Mickey Spillane is best known for his many Mike Hammer mystery novels, but in 1951 he published the non-Hammer The Long Wait, which soon became the subject of a motion picture from the same company who brought Spillane’s I, the Jury (1953) and Kiss Me, Deadly (1955) to the silver screen. On the cusp of stardom, two-time Academy Award winner Anthony Quinn headlines a strong cast along with Oscar-winning actor Charles Coburn (The More the Merrier), Gene Evans (The Steel Helmet) and Peggie Castle (I, The Jury).

For thoughts on The Long Wait, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/29CHE2dwxcA?t=1432]

Video Quality

The Long Wait appears on 4K UHD Blu-Ray courtesy of ClassicFlix in 2160p presentation from a new restoration that is quite strong even without HDR implementation to further distinguish it from its Blu-Ray counterpart. While both of these presentations offer a comparable amount of visual wonder, the 4K does offer some minor improvements and a touch more fine detail. This presentation is sure to please almost any fan. The black and white cinematography from Franz Planer is gorgeous with gentle gradients and subtle textures. The contrast remains stable and provides appreciable improvements in sharpness.

This transfer maintains the filmic quality of the picture with well resolved film grain giving way to more detail than you might have expected from a film of this vintage. Black levels are appropriately deep without any pesky nuisances such as digital noise or compression artifacts. The transfer is free of most dust specks and print damage that was previously seen on home entertainment. This picture showcases some wonderful depth to the image which allows the world to feel more three dimensional. This transfer is a delightful showcase of textural details in the costumes and production design. ClassicFlix has done some really great work with this.

Audio Quality

The 4K UHD Blu-Ray disc comes with a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track in English that handles this material fairly well. The dialogue is the standout aspect throughout the duration of the feature. The environmental sounds such as gunshots and explosions make an impact when they enter the picture. There does not seem to be any major damage to the track, but certain elements sound more fragile than others. In particular, the score that enhances the mood of the story feels a bit harsh and distorted in points. The track does not feature constant kinetic activity, but it comes alive when it makes sense in a formidable way. While you could hope for better, ClassicFlix has done their best to provide a stable time for this. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Mike Hammer continuation writer Max Allan Collins (Road to Perdition), co-author of Spillane – King of Pulp Fiction (with James L. Traylor), delivers a fact-filled presentation which relays some specific personal details from his friendship with Mickey Spillane and discusses his work outside of the character of Mike Hammer. There is some engaging information about the ensemble, why this film exists and more.
Image Gallery with Rare Scene Stills: A selection of rare behind-the-scenes photos, production stills and more are provided.
Trailers: There are trailers provided for I, The Jury, Black Magic, Stand-In, Raw Deal and T-Men.

Final Thoughts

The Long Wait is a really entertaining early effort from the legendary Anthony Quinn. There are plenty of plot holes to pick apart and the writing is not always working in the film’s favor, but it is constructed well by Victor Saville who knows how to keep the audience engaged. The Mike Hammer stories are usually pretty fun, but it is nice to see that Mickey Spillane could deliver when the detective was not strictly involved in his output. ClassicFlix has released a 4K UHD Blu-Ray featuring a strong A/V presentation and a decent assortment of special features. If you are a film noir fan, this offers a fun viewing experience. Recommended

The Long Wait is currently available to purchase on 4K UHD Blu-Ray and Blu-Ray.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: ClassicFlix has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.